Computer systems, such as server blade systems, typically include cooling devices such as fans, blowers and other air moving devices. Air is moved through various components of the systems and ultimately into some number of air moving devices in the back of the main chassis. A protective mesh for electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) or safety is located on the air moving device exhaust. The protective mesh can easily get clogged with dust and debris. This severely reduces the air flow rate throughout the system. Dust build up on protective mesh can greatly increase air flow impedance and reduce total amount of air being pulled through a heat generating device, like a computer system. This reduction in air flow corresponds to a reduced cooling for these hot components, increasing the risk of component failures due to excessive temperatures.
Prior art attempts to clean the air moving devices include providing filtering and cooling systems in the air moving devices. However, these filters build up with dust and debris and require manual cleaning. Also, brushes and vacuums have been used to disrupt and remove dust from the mesh or non-moving part in the air moving system. This is ineffective because this cleaning system is dependent on the users schedule and the manual cleaning can cause damage to the mesh. Electrode self cleaning mechanisms have been used to remove debris, however, a fully coated electrode no longer properly collects dust and this system typically requires additional manual cleaning to work properly. Manually distorting a filter in an air moving device has been provided to remove debris from the filter. Lastly, providing a heat exchanger and reversing the air flow is used to remove debris from the system while withdrawing heat has been provided.
In summary, none of these methods or systems in the prior art automatically and effectively solve the problem of debris and dust build up on protective mesh in air moving devices.